A group that represents the world's top food producers and retailers announced at a meeting in New York that its members would cut waste by half over the next ten years.

The Consumer Goods Forum includes members from 70 countries with combined sales of $2.8 trillion.

The group said in a release that it was working on an overall estimate of food waste for next year to establish a baseline, and would set up ways to monitor waste from its members.

The move comes as governments eye regulations to cut down on food waste. Last month, France passed legislation to punish supermarkets for destroying edible food, and the European Commission is pushing member nations to cut waste by a third by 2025.

Meanwhile, a new report from the American Chemistry Council found that Americans throw away an average of $640 worth of food each year, and more than half of those asked in a survey said they throw away leftovers at least once a week.

Read More:

• Top Consumer Brands Pledge To Halve Food Waste By 2025 (Reuters)
• Commission Waste Package Needs Attainable Goals For Member States (The Parliament Magazine)
• Environmental Impacts Of Food Waste Aren't A Great Concern, A New Survey Shows (Time)